SKYNET alliance chat

BigOldBob

quazi44 wrote:

I don't know if I have an abnormal bracket or not but I'm constantly fluctuating between top 1-2 and mid 60s, currently at 23 and moving up. Should be ready to grind it out near the end

I have the same problem. You can grind as much as you want, a few hours later you are out of top 50 and that after 6 days. That's annoying. You can't calculate at which place you finally finish.

hex706f726368

Sounds like a better PvE bracket than mine. I fluctuate between top 20 and somewhere between 200-300. I'm only hitting it at the end of each refresh now though. 30+ hrs is a long time for points to not change, but the scaling on this one is so jacked up that it's detrimental for me to play otherwise.

My GSBW is weakly covered as well. I did manage the full rainbow reward from the First Avenger PvP, but that was a major grind. I didn't really have anything that worked well with CA.SR. He was mostly dead weight. He's probably going to require quite a few more covers to become useful. I think IM40 feeding his red would be a pretty effective combo, but I'm cover limited on IM40 as well. Kind of hard to carry two cover limited guys into PvP.

So I've pretty much been hating these last two events. Hoping to win 3 Psylocke covers as well since I really enjoyed using her when she was boosted during her sub in the last PvE.

Unknown

Looks like we're doing well in the Unstable Iso event. We can see scores now, and it looks like everyone's putting up good points.

Also, we have chat. So everyone should check that out under the Alliance tab.

The scaling and rubber banding has been pretty crazy for this event. I've been able to get into first place each refresh, but by the next time I play, I'm in the 200s. I hope I can push hard enough tonight to take the top spot at the end.

Unknown

Hahaha, it's so like D3 to put up a major game update right before an event ends... It's super risky but I'll update. The Alliance changes are really intriguing.

Unknown

Update is worth it on first glance at least. The chat is persistent and seems easy to use, and since we're a friendly alliance, it's fun to be able to check out how everyone else is doing.

The grind on this event is rough, but after missing out on lazy Thor covers, I really want to make sure to get covers for the new characters so that if I am inclined to buy some skills with HP, I'll at least have it as an option. Go team!

hex706f726368

So is this thread dead now that we have in game chat?

My participation in the in game chat is going to be spotty at best until d3 supports a swipe/gesture keyboard on droid. Going back to hunt and peck input is putting me off surprisingly effectively.

Unknown

I'll still talk to you hex.
Our in game chat is pretty active, but I still check the forums every now and then.

Unknown

I'll keep you guys company too. Besides some things require more than a 141 character limit. Which is why I've never like Twitter...

Anyways, I noticed that we're now 19/20?? Someone dropped out? I'm looking down the list and can't figure out who it was. A random guy messaged in our chat too so maybe if you have a Pending status, you can chat? Do we get to weigh in as to who we let in?

Unknown

Yes. It looks like elton_diogo quit. He seemed to be a good competitor, but it appears he was also the one making roster changes on his own earlier.
I think it's only fair that we give that spot to DuckyV, who was kicked a couple weeks ago with no explanation.

Although this does bring up an interesting discussion about what criteria we want to use on who we accept in the future.

Unknown

That's a big loss, he was our top scorer last event. We're still solid though. In terms of the future, I don't want to say we should be elitist, but I don't see any reason why not to shoot for people with good rosters if possible.

Unknown

Yea, I've been meaning to ask but I'd like to make sure we point out what kind of alliance we are (i.e. competitive, casual, ...casual-core?). I'd prefer us to be more of a competitive alliance only because sometimes we look like we could be a shoe-in for a top 10 team and sometimes we drop rapidly to #25 - #40. I dedicate a lot of time (even as a full-time professional with a family somehow) to make sure I'm personally in the top 10 in every event, and it'd be invigorating to know that my team members are fighting to do the same. I certainly don't expect everyone to toss away their lives like I do, but knowing that we're all on the same page is definitely going to help.

Unknown

I agree. I think we are competitive and will continue to be competitive.
Also, DuckyV's settled into a new alliance, so we do need to think about what criteria we'll use to select future members.

Roster strength is a good measure to use, but it doesn't necessarily translate into points either.
We can also talk to people trying to join in chat. Maybe we could think of a few questions to ask.

Unknown

I'd like to build an alliance of competitive players. Now that we can chat and see scores within our alliance, we'll have a better way of keeping track of everyone.
I think we need to strike a balance somewhere between "anyone can join and goof around" and "get x score in every event or get kicked".

Basically, I just want what's best for the alliance. We need to figure out as a group what that is.

Unknown

I agree. That's why my measuring stick for activity/competitiveness is their collection of new characters.

Having a few lvl 100+ characters in their roster is great, but those can accumulate through earning ISO through multiple means over a large span of time. A player with more than two or three covers for the most recently released characters is a great indicator that that player actively fights to win covers in each event and can earn large amounts of points, which is what I think we want as an alliance.

What do you guys think?

Unknown

Good point. Roster strength is really the only gauge we have to base opinion on a stranger in this game anyway.

It would be nice to hear everyone's thoughts on how they see our alliance and potential members.
Based on the limited information we have available. It will probably boil down to getting the player with the best roster.
Also, I guess it's obvious that we as an alliance want to get a lot of points.

But is there anything other than roster strength and/or potential points contributed that should be considered to join SKYNET?

Unknown

I agree with pretty much everything you and Knock3r wrote above. While I'm not expecting us to be on par with S.H.I.E.L.D. and the like, I also usually manage to place in the top tier of events and would like to see a similar alliance performance. I do NOT want score/placement requirements, but I do want us to be a competitive group. AAA baseball would be my analogy I suppose. I don't really want to kick anyone out unless they are consistently apathetic and not trying, so in order to maintain a competitive team, I think we should worry more about our standards on the front end, and recent covers is as good a measuring stick as any that readily come to mind.

hex706f726368

Member criteria is a tough one for me. I like that we don't have minimum score or roster requirements. But I do think a certain level of activity might be a prudent requirement. I don't know what that is, but for example, you must score above 300 (token level) in 6 out of every 8 events. Then we (ha, I mean the commanders!) need to figure if it's an auto-boot or warning, and then how many warnings you can get total or in a certain period, blah blah sounds like a lot of work.

Right now, the way the alliance awards are given, 1st place is significant, and then there's not much diff (iso and/or hp) between 2-50 & 51-100). Competing for first seems like a pretty big reach to me and I don't think that's our goal. So really only a moderate amount of activity (TBD!) from a majority of the group should be necessary to win the alliance the cover and a good chunk of iso & hp.

Note: I like when we finish in the top 50, because if I shield I can usually finish in top 10 and end up with a positive hp outcome.

I'd like to make sure we remain competitive as a group, but each individual doesn't feel overly obligated so that the game becomes work.

Unknown

BTW, I really liked the idea behind our first signature (Ultron photobombing) so I've been messing around with a new sig. It's kinda like Terminator's eyes I also wanted something not as wide.

The image is here if you want to use it:
http://i.imgur.com/97Qoh9G.jpg

hex706f726368

So I did mention to my friend who plays fairly regularly to request a join. gustav3 is his in game handle. it's up to you guys obviously. i guess it'll depend on if he meets whatever criteria the group ends up with. he did tell me he bought his HT up to 5 green.

btw, i like that sig banner Knock3r. i might switch to that as i like a smaller profile as well

Unknown

Thanks Hex. Are you trying to get your friend to replace me in our Shake n' Bake arrangement?

In terms of other prospective member requirements, I'd say someone who has a good understanding of the mechanics of the game such as MMR, scaling, tanking, refreshes, rubberbanding, etc. would be essential for a candidate. Also a frequent forum goer/poster would be a plus. It gets lonely in here talking to myself...